free admission and free parking on campus (West Road Garage and the Horseshoe)

Co-sponsored by the Department of Classical Studies and the New Orleans Society of the Archaeological Institute of America

Archaeological and historic sources provide evidence for the strong Jewish presence on the Eastern Adriatic coast since the antiquity. Jews had an important role in trade and other economic activities, particularly in Salona, the capital city of the Roman province of Dalmatia and the most important harbor and market place in that part of the Empire. Based on historical and archaeological research, we have recently proved the presence of a substantial Jewish community within Diocletian’s Palace in Split, situated only a few miles from Salona. Although the Jewish community of Split never surpassed 300 people, it has a rich history and has been very important for the economic and cultural life of the city. In the 16th century, when Sephardic Jews from the Ottoman Empire and from Venice settled in Split, a new synagogue was established in the northwest part of Diocletian’s Palace, in the midst of the Jewish quarter, which was later called the ghetto. In the second half of the sixteenth century Daniel Rodrigez, a Spanish Jew from Venice enlarged the port of Split and founded what became the largest lazaretto in the Mediterranean. He also established the Jewish cemetery on the Marjan hill overlooking the city. The eighteenth century saw the arrival of the Ashkenazi Jews, and modern developments they brought to the city. In the nineteenth century cement industry, a distillery, a book shop, a print house, and a bank were all introduced by several prominent Jewish families. Half of the community perished in the Holocaust, and during the recent war in Bosnia, Jewish refugees from Sarajevo found safe heaven in Split. Today a tiny, but vibrant community of around 100 members plans to open a Jewish museum and thus become more attractive, boost local Jewish identity, enhance the quality of the community life and make it sustainable.